Our European Patents Nos. 0,011,402B and 0,024,790B and European published Application No. 0,153,024A, all are concerned with whole muscle-meat products which have an outer layer of fat. Such products have, as an integral part, a flexible outer casing simulating the skin of a natural cut and this outer casing is a production necessity to contain the forces generated during extrusion of whole-muscle meat. The application of the casing needs an operator and precludes a truly continuous process.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,539,210 discloses a structured meat product, formed by coextrusion, comprising a lean portion and a fat rim. The starting material for the lean portion consists of chunks of meat of substantial size but with the muscle scaffold network severed. The chunks are mechanically massaged to release adhesive protein and are aggregated into a mass prior to forming. U.K. published application No. 2,156,650A discloses a restructured meat product formed by kneading thin slices of meat into a compacted mass and then forming the kneaded mass into the product, the product being held together by the adhesive nature of the meat juices and the entanglement of the slices, both arising from the kneading process. There is no fatty portion.